State v. Brian Vincent Rotolo, 2019AP002061-CR

November 27, 2018: Neenah PD responded to a McDonald’s after the manager reported employee Brian Rotolo was joking about using/selling drugs at work and to underage coworkers.
Officer Douglas, wearing body cam, took Rotolo to a nearby open room for questioning while two other uniformed officers remained present.
Officers asked about drugs on his person or in his vehicle; Rotolo initially denied, said he was joking; an officer advised he could refuse a vehicle search and then called for a K-9 sniff after denial.
Because Rotolo was reported to carry a pocketknife, he was patted down; during/after the frisk he asked if he could leave and was told he was being detained.
Within about five minutes from initial contact, Rotolo admitted occasionally smoking marijuana, said he had a small amount in his car, and consented to a search; officers found marijuana and paraphernalia.
Rotolo was later arrested and charged; he moved to suppress his statements and the search on Miranda/custody grounds, the trial court denied the motion, he pled no contest, and appealed.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument (State)	Defendant's Argument (Rotolo)	Held
Whether questioning before Rotolo’s admission/consent was "custodial" requiring Miranda warnings	The encounter was a lawful investigatory Terry stop, brief and noncoercive; not the functional equivalent of arrest	Being told he was detained and not free to leave converted the stop into custodial interrogation, triggering Miranda	Not custodial; Miranda warnings not required — questioning remained an investigatory Terry stop
Whether Rotolo’s consent to search his car was voluntary and the resulting evidence admissible	Consent was voluntary after brief noncoercive questioning and explicit advisement he could refuse	Consent was tainted by custodial coercion and involuntary	Consent was voluntary; search and statements admissible

Miranda v. Arizona, 384 U.S. 436 (1966) (Miranda warnings required before custodial interrogation)
Terry v. Ohio, 392 U.S. 1 (1968) (authorizes brief investigatory stops on reasonable suspicion)
Berkemer v. McCarty, 468 U.S. 420 (1984) (ordinary traffic/Terry stops are generally noncustodial for Miranda purposes)
Oregon v. Mathiason, 429 U.S. 492 (1977) (police interviews of suspects are not inherently custodial)
State v. Lonkoski, 346 Wis. 2d 523 (2013) (use totality of circumstances; custody requires restraint equivalent to formal arrest)
State v. Gruen, 218 Wis. 2d 581 (Ct. App. 1998) (enumerates factors—freedom to leave, place/length of questioning, degree of restraint—for custody analysis)